To Tempt a Wilde Read Online Free Page B

settled between Nate’s brows as he drove past the south pasture heading into town, thinking of the words slung at him by the woman.
    He hadn’t wanted to go to town. He had enough to do around the ranch to keep him busy from sunup to sundown. But thoughts of the woman—Althea—had plagued him theentire morning.
    Hell, thoughts of her and their exchange had kept him up most of the night as well.
    Although she’d said it in an “I don’t give a damn” kind of way, he’d seen a look akin to desperation in her eyes. The look, coupled with his reaction to her, had plagued him throughout the night and into the next day.
    One time too many while helping the hands mendsome critical fence, he’d hadto redo a piece he’d fixed. Once he’d nearly hammered off his own finger as he pounded away at the fencing before he decided he needed to get away.
    Immediately images assaulted his mind in vivid, erotic detail of just how Ms. Althea Dayton, or whatever her real name was, could work out the debt.
    Vivid, mind-blowing images.
    The type that even now had his cock rock-hard and ready. Ready to showthe smug woman just how she could service him.
    His mood had gone from hell to hell-in-a-handbasket when he’d stalked inside the house and caught his brothers before they could make a quick getaway.
    Nate stopped just inside the doorway and surveyed the scene in front of him. Both of his brothers were eating the jumbo cookies Lilly had made. Praising her for them as though they’d never tasteda damn cookie before. Relaxed as though they hadn’t a care in the world.
    To say he was pissed off was putting it mildly.
    â€œOkay, who the hell’s bright idea was it to hire that woman and not let me know about it?”
    The conversation came to a grinding halt in the warm, airy kitchen as soon as he spoke.
    His brothers looked up at him, cookies halfway to their mouths, both looking as guilty as twoboys with their hands caught in the cookie jar.
    One look at Nate’s angry, tight features and they knew, instantly, they were in deep-shit trouble.
    A side glance in Lilly’s direction and Nate had seen the humor lurking in her dark eyes but had chosen toignore it. Miss Lilly could find humor in the situation. She had that right. He couldn’t go off half-cocked with the woman who’d helped raisehim, one who was like a surrogate mother.
    He turned back to his brothers.
    They, on the other hand, didn’t get a get-out-of-jail-free card. Not even close.
    â€œDon’t even try getting away,” he said, pinning them with a look when they both, at the same time, made as though to leave the room.
    Both Shilah and Holt paused midflight. Slowly, they spun around on the scuffed-up heels of their well-wornboots, both warily watching him as he advanced farther into the large kitchen.
    He stopped less than a foot from them, crossed his arms over his wide chest and stared them down.
    Although technically there wasn’t much in the way of staring down. The men were all of similar height, Holt being the tallest at six foot five, Nate and Shilah just a few inches shy of that.
    â€œOkay, now look here, brother—”Holt was the first to speak in his slow, crawling drawl, the one he used when he was either trying to get a piece of tail from a woman or when he knew he’d screwed up and was buying time.
    â€œCut the brother crap,” Nate interrupted. That was another thing he did. Whenever he wanted to maneuver his way out of a situation, Holt was quick to pull out the brother card.
    â€œBesides, it wasn’t me who invitedher to come. It was Shilah—”
    â€œWay to throw me under the bus,” Shilah broke in, hisexpression neutral, yet the look he gave Holt promised retribution was coming his way. Soon.
    â€œI may have issued the initial invitation, but you were the one who actually hired her when she came.”
    â€œYeah, well—”
    Nate